BREAKTHEBARRIER CIC and IFB Gaming united to deliver Get Online Week at the Brandon Estate in October.
Ola and John, directors at BREAKTHEBARRIER CIC, organised this to help bridge the digital divide among residents on the estate, located near Kennington Park.
Activities were aimed at different abilities. Ola helped residents set up an email account for the first time. John delivered workshops on computer programming languages HTML and CSS. Local police also stopped by to help residents register and security mark their bikes.
Navigating digital technology is important for many reasons, not least improving health outcomes, e.g. by booking vaccinations online. Digital inclusion is essential during a cost-of-living crisis: residents were taught how to compare prices online and reduce their monthly phone bill by communicating online.
Mandy, a Brandon Estate TRA board member, kindly showed Community Southwark around the estate and said,
“Get Online Week is good for getting people together. I sent my first email on Tuesday. If I need to email the council, I can do that – I don’t need to wait for them.”
Get Online Week has proved to be a success. BREAKTHEBARRIER CIC plans to run weekly workshops and drop-in sessions in and around the estate (dates TBC). Local NHS staff also attended, as part of their efforts to reduce the digital divide to improve health outcomes.
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